The Clash Of Celebs Over Lux Style Awards

Several celebs come out to criticise those boycotting LSA nominations

Lahore (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 25th April, 2019) The nominations for the 18th LSA 2019 were announced recently.

However, the annual awards show has been marred with controversy after several celebrities, including Meesha Shafi, announced to give up their nominations for Ali Zafar, alleged of sexual harassment by Meesha, has also been nominated for the award.

Expressing displeasure over this protest, several celebrities have come out to criticise those boycotting LSA nominations.

Actress and model Iman Ali, who is also a jury member, in her statement said, “Our sense of entitlement to quickly judge anyone and jump to conclusions worrisome specially in this age of social media. A platform that has made it too easy for some to become a part of a controversy or join a band wagon and become famous over night and potentially ruin anyone's life or body of work in minutes. Fame and respect should be earned with hard work in time not by childish walk outs and social media posts playing judge, jury and executioner.”

After this statement started a new debate, Iman Ali came up with a clarification.

“Over the past 18 years, the Lux Style Awards have been nurturing Pakistani excellence in fashion, films, music and drama. Over these two decades, the Lux Style Awards nominations have been decided by an unbiased, independent and transparent jury of industry peers and critics...In 2019, the Lux Style Awards have been surrounded by dialog around nominees involved in a matter of alleged sexual harassment,” she said.

“The Film Jury of the Lux Style Awards appreciates the sensitivity of the subject and recognizes the intensity of public sentiment Nevertheless, it is also important to respect that the case is being decided by Pakistan's judicial system. We have complete faith in the law of the land and believe that justice will prevail,” she added.

Meanwhile, actor and filmmaker Shamoon Abbasi also slammed those boycotting the LSA.

Taking to Twitter, he said as far as I know Ali Zafar and Meesha Shafi’s matter came to an end, where Meesha Shafi was fined with Rs 10,000 for being unable to prove any sort of harassment by Ali Zafar.

“What is this LSA chaotic walk outs in a baseless story.. Matlab kuch bhi?!” he wrote.

He took a dig against those ‘throwing awards’ in another tweet by telling them the rules of doing so.

“Rules of throwing awards on the streets: 1. you don't take pictures of thing being thrown away 2. You don't bring the things back home that you have thrown away 3. You don't disrespect your awards for public attention for a matter that has been resolved,” Shamoon Abbasi added.

Ahmed Ali Butt also said that treating an award like a piece of garbage is truly sad and uncivilized.

Taking to social media, the actor wrote, “People have the right to protest and even request not to be nominated if they please to do so, but to degrade an award and to treat it like a piece of garbage is truly sad and uncivilized. This means you have no regard for the art and your fellow peers who gave you the title.”

Ahmed Ali Butt stressed that there are better ways to protest while Ali Zafar and Meesha Shafi’s case in already in court so it should be dealt by law.

Model Eman Suleman was the first to turn down her LSA nomination expressing how she did not wish to be nominated alongside an alleged harasser.

This followed boycotts by more fashion brands and celebrities, including Generation, makeup artist Saima Bargfrede, filmmaker Jami, model Rubbab Ali, singer Meesha Shafi, folk rock band The Sketches, designer Maheen Khan and makeup artist Fatima Nasir.

Singer Meesha Shafi, whose song ‘Mein’ was nominated for the best song, demanded that her name and work be removed from the list of nominees given the current circumstances.

Meesha Shafi had alleged her colleague Ali Zafar of sexual harassment in a tweet in June, 2018.

Using the #Metoo hashtag, Shafi added that it is not easy to speak out but it is harder to stay silent. “My conscience will not allow it anymore,” she added.

Meesha had then filed a complaint against Ali Zafar under the Protection Against Harassment of Women at Workplace Act 2010 while Ali Zafar had also sent a legal notice to co-artist Meesha Shafi for her allegations.

The Teefa in Trouble star had filed a defamation suit in a court in Lahore through his lawyer, asking for an apology from Meesha Shafi for levelling baseless allegations and pay Rs1 billion in damages.

The case is currently under proceeding.